SPRINGFIELD – As many as seven people from the anti-foreclosure group No One Leaves were arrested Friday morning on Rochelle Street outside the home of a former Springfield firefighter embroiled in an eviction dispute with the bank.

The resident, Alexander Richardson, 61, was also evicted from the property that he had owned for 32 years. Organizers of the protest faulted the mortgage holder, Wells Fargo, for failing to negotiate in good faith with Richardson in order to allow him to keep his home.

A similar protest was engaged by the same group Aug. 4 when the bank tried to evict Richardson the first time. That eviction was thwarted when the locksmith charged with changing the locks failed to show up.

On Friday, the eviction was carried out and Richardson removed from the property.

“At this moment, my soul hurts for my home and my community,” Richardson said. “We must continue to organize and fight against those greedy banks. It is time to take the fight to them.”

No One Leaves said seven of their members were arrested when they engaged in a sit-down strike on the front porch and refused police orders to vacate the property.

The arrested members of the group are Geoffrey Lohenstine of 442 Warren Wright Road in Belchertown, Mason Weiser, no address given, Cesi Maseglia, 91 Mountain St. in Hadenville, Frank Cincotta, 465 State St. in Springfield, Dylan E. Fitzwater, 893 West St. in Amherst. Vanessa Lynch, of 67 West St. in Northampton, and Malcolm Chu, 112 Washington Road in Springfield. All seven were charged with trespassing.

Since the first attempt to evict Richardson, community groups, city officials and elected officials including state Rep. Ben Swan and U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren have been lobbying the bank to halt the eviction and to negotiate to allow him to repurchase the property.

“Wells Fargo claims to be helping people stay in their homes, but today’s eviction is sending a clear signal they have no intention of supporting families,” said Roberto Garcia-Ceballos. “This community will continue to resist all no-fault evictions.”

Richardson, now a substitute teacher, was a Springfield firefighter for 18 years before a back injury forced him into early retirement in 1998. His first mortgage on the property — for $18,400.00 — was recorded in 1986, according to records on file with the Hampden Registry of Deeds.

Hampden Registry of Deeds documents show a February 2006 mortgage for $130,500 at an initial rate of 9.8 percent; the lender was Option One Mortgage Corporation of Irvine, Calif.

Richardson said he fell behind on his mortgage payments beginning in 2008 when his annual pension was cut. He said the city Retirement Board cut his pension by $60,000 to offset the amount of money he was making as a substitute teacher.

According to additional documents filed with the Hampden Registry of Deeds, the home was also the subject of a May 2005 tax taking for $14,65.59 in unpaid taxes.

Richard said previously he attempted to renegotiate his mortgage with Wells Fargo since 2008 but the bank has always refused to do so.

The eviction came as Richardson was seeking approval for a loan with Boston Community Capital, a non-profit lender based in Boston, to repurchase the home at its current market value. The home was valued at $97,200 in 2013 and $101,000 in 2014, according to city records.

WWLP TV22 quoted Tom Goyda, Wells Fargo vice president of Consumer Lending Communications, as saying that bank officials have tried to work with Richardson but ultimately were unable to reach a solution, which necessitated the eviction.

“In mid-July, after losing a legal challenge, Mr. Richardson agreed to stop contesting the eviction and to vacate the property by July 25, 2014. He failed to live up to that agreement and we unfortunately have had to move to evict him as a result. Since the foreclosure was completed, he also has turned down multiple offers of financial relocation assistance from Wells Fargo,” Goyda said in a statement.